IMF chief outlines key areas of assistance for Iraq rebuilding

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Friday, October 24, 2003

IMF chief outlines key areas of assistance for Iraq rebuilding

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There is much more that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) can and wants to do as the next stage of the reconstruction process gets underway, IMF Managing Director Horst Kohler told the international donors conference on Iraq Friday.

"I see six major inter-related areas for our contribution," Kohler told the two-day conference that has gathered representatives from 71 countries and 20 international organizations to discuss efforts to bring Iraq back to its feet.

"First is economic policy advice. The IMF will help create a stable macroeconomic framework which is essential to underpin economic revival," Kohler said.

The IMF's second area of contribution is technical assistance to help Iraqis build up the administrative and policy-making capacity to run their country, Kohler told the conference. "The IMF will develop training programs for Iraqi officials."

Kohler also welcomed the establishment of the International Advisory and Monitoring Board, saying it was set up "to ensure that the Development Fund for Iraq is used in a transparent mannerand that petroleum sales are made consistent with prevailing international market best practices."

The international community must help Iraq put its external debt on a sustainable footing," but the IMF recognizes that the issue is a matter for Iraq and its creditors, Kohler added.

The IMF chief noted that the IMF stands ready to provide financial assistance in a phased manner and in line with its policies and procedures.

The IMF could initially provide 850 million US dollars as emergency post-conflict assistance, followed by amounts between 850 million to 1.7 billion dollars annually under its regular facilities. Total IMF assistance could range from 2.5 billion to 4.25 billion dollars over a three-year period, said the IMF chief.

Kohler said the economic futures of Iraq and of the region as awhole are very closely tied together.

A virtuous circle of a growing Iraq and a vibrant Middle East region need to be generated, and the IMF would contribute to developing a policy framework, together with regional institutions, for the re-integration of Iraq into the Middle East and the world economy, Kohler said.

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